Public safety minister Ralph Goodale would not confirm whether any of the investigators looking into the Boushie family’s complaints about their treatment at the hands of the RCMP will be Indigenous.

“The CRCC (Civilian Review and Complaints Commission) is a relatively small group but when they’re examining issues they have the capacity to reach outside for external expertise as they may require it,” said Goodale. He volunteered that the CRCC is going through a membership “renewal” at the moment, which is “an opportunity to be responsive and sensitive in that renewal process.”

Colten Boushie, a young Indigenous man, was killed when Gerald Stanley, a farmer, shot him in the head. Stanley was found not guilty on Friday, prompting outcry and critique of the justice system. In addition to concerns about the judicial process, Boushie’s family raised alarm at how the RCMP treated them the night Boushie was killed.

That complaint has ended up in the hands of the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission (CRCC) for the RCMP, an arms-length organization responsible for receiving and reviewing civilian complaints about the RCMP.

Goodale would not confirm whether any members of this Commission are Indigenous.

The complaint surfaced after Boushie’s mother, Debbie Baptiste, said the RCMP was insensitive, searched her home without permission and accused her of drinking according to The Globe and Mail.

An initial Mountie investigation conducted by an Indigenous officer cleared the officers of wrongdoing. The family then moved their complaint to the CRCC. A representative of that organization also would not say if any staff at the organization are Indigenous, although they have not yet responded to an additional request for comment.

Goodale said this is part of why he can’t confirm whether there is Indigenous staff involved in the investigation.“I wouldn’t comment on the process that is not complete,” he said.

The Boushie family’s criminal defence lawyer, Chris Murphy, said it does not matter whether the investigators are Indigenous — despite the all-white jury in the Boushie trial being a major source of contention.

“I believe I can speak for the family — we don’t require Indigenous investigators on this case. We require investigators who are willing to turn up everything. That’s all we want,” said Murphy.

Many aspects of the fallout from the case remain unclear, Boushie’s mother, Debbie Baptiste, was clear about one priority — that the government take action to prevent another Boushie case.